One player Colorado must contain in season opener vs. Georgia Tech

The Colorado Buffaloes' schedule does not start easy with a matchup against Georgia Tech, which finished last season with a 9-4 record, including a 27-20 win over the Buffaloes. It is no secret that Colorado struggled against the run in 2025, especially in their game against the Yellow Jackets when they allowed 320 yards on the ground.

Just like last year's matchup, this game will be won on the ground. If the Buffaloes can manage to slow down Georgia Tech's new running back, Justice Haynes, they can win this game. If not, Haynes has the talent to take over the entire game.

How Justice Haynes can change the game

Haynes spent the first two seasons of his collegiate career with Alabama before transferring to Michigan. His time with the Wolverines is what put him on the map, with 857 rushing yards and 7.1 yards per attempt, which led the Big Ten. How Colorado deals with him will determine the outcome of the game.

Haynes has the potential to dominate on the ground, such as when he had nearly 10 yards per carry against New Mexico last season or when he had 152 yards against Michigan State. If he gets on a roll, Georgia Tech will win this game in the trenches.

How Colorado slows Haynes down

Luckily for Colorado, its linebacker room is much deeper and significantly more talented than it was last season. The linebackers will be the anchors of this defense, and while you ideally want to stop Haynes at the line of scrimmage with the interior defensive line, it seems more likely the linebackers will be the key to containing him. They will have to maintain gap integrity throughout, as Haynes can easily exploit any minor mistake. If the CU linebacking core can show sure tackling with everyone running to the ball, they can prevent Haynes from taking over the game and force the Yellow Jackets to rely more on the passing game.

Prediction

The Buffaloes are not going to be able to shut Haynes down completely, and it would be unrealistic to expect they could, given how bad they were against the run last year. However, their defense as a whole is better, especially at the second level. Haynes tends to make players miss, so it would not be surprising if he had at least one explosive run. But given the depth of this linebacker group, I believe they can at least prevent Haynes from having a 150-plus-yard game, though I still expect him to rush for at least 100 yards.

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This article originally appeared on Buffaloes Wire: One player Colorado must contain in season opener vs. Georgia Tech